Meet Portland’s food community in person – from chefs and farmers to food writers and photographers; ”Speed networking” session; Bites from Nostrana, Beaker and Flask, Ten 01, Gilt Club, the Heathman and more…

PORTLAND, Oregon (July 8, 2010) – Seattle’s popular Foodportunity networking event hits the road this fall to venture into Portland’s hot food scene. Portland food professionals and food lovers can meet face to face with local chefs, restaurateurs, farmers, food photographers, food companies, PR professionals and food journalists and bloggers. Want to ask Castagna’s Matt Lightner what it was like to meet José Andrés at the Aspen Food & Wine festival or Philippe Boulot to divulge his favorite “steelhead” fishing hole? Or what about Gabe Rucker’s foie gras lollipops and behind the scenes at Iron Chef America with Naomi Pomeroy?

The culinary networking event takes place at the Heathman Restaurant and Bar on Monday, September 13, 2010 from 6 to 9 p.m. Tickets are $22 (including all handling fees) per person and include appetizers and a wide range of food products from local companies. Tickets are on sale now through Brown Paper Tickets http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/118974

“I was a speaker at IACP in Portland last April and had so much fun getting to know Portland’s food scene that I knew it was time to connect Seattle and Portland’s food community,” said Foodportunity founder Keren Brown. Keren will travel to Portland in September with a posse of Seattle food writers and bloggers to connect with some of Portland’s culinary community. “It’s hard to find time to meet all the different people in Portland’s food world, so Foodportunity will bring them all together in one location on one night!”

The following Portland chefs and food professionals will be available for informal questions and conversation in the library of the Heathman Restaurant and Bar between 6:30 and 7:30 p.m.

Philippe Boulot, 2001 James Beard Award for Best Chef Pacific NW; Maître Cuisinier de France; Culinary Director of the Heathman Restaurant and Bar and Executive Chef of the Multnomah Athletic Club

Matt Lightner, executive chef of Castagna and 2010 Best New Chef, Food & Wine Magazine; and the Oregonian’s 2010 Restaurant of the Year. Nominated for Rising Star Chef from the James Beard Foundation.

Naomi Pomeroy, owner and executive chef of Beast; Food Network’s Iron Chef America challenger and Best New Chef 2009 Food & Wine Magazine. Nominated for the 2010 James Beard Award for Best Chef Pacific NW and received Oregonian’s Restaurant of the Year in 2008.

Gabe Rucker, owner and executive chef of Le Pigeon and Little Bird (coming soon); Best New Chef 2009 Food & Wine Magazine. Nominated for the 2010 James Beard Award for Rising Star Chef and Oregonian’s Restaurant of the Year in 2008.

The Heathman Restaurant & Bar will host the event and executive chef Philippe Boulot will serve a selection of appetizers alongside several Portland restaurants, including: Beaker & Flask, Clarklewis, Gilt Club, Nostrana, Ten 01 and Scratch. Beer and wine will be available from a cash bar, and a wide range of food products from local companies will be available to sample. Companies interested in getting involved may contact Keren Brown at Kerenlovestocook@gmail.com.

In addition at 8:30 p.m., the first 30 Foodportunity ticket-holders to send an email to infopdx@foodportunity.com will get a seat at the “speed networking” session, hosted by Byron Beck, a freelancer for national and Oregon-based publications, who also appears on television and radio, has his own blog at byronbeck.com and contributes to pdx.eater.com. What better way to meet so many foodies at one time (for 1 minute each) and hand out business cards in this face to face setting.

About The Heathman Restaurant and Bar

The Heathman Restaurant exemplifies the best of the Pacific Northwest using seasonal ingredients inspired by the flavors and cuisine of France. Recipient of the James Beard Best Chef: Pacific NW award in 2001, Philippe Boulot partners with the region’s select growers, producers and vintners to find the highest quality ingredients. Boulot was honored by the Academie Culinaire de France as the Academie’s Chef of the Year. The Heathman Restaurant and Bar was chosen as one of the “Best Bars” by Portland Monthly. For more information, please call 503-790-7752 or visit www.heathmanrestaurantandbar.com. The Heathman Restaurant is located in the historic Heathman Hotel at 1001 SW Broadway in downtown Portland’s cultural district.

About Foodportunity

Keren Brown, aka Frantic Foodie, conceived of the food networking idea known as Foodportunity and has held more than a dozen food-related events this year in the Seattle market. Recently recognized by MarthaStewart.com as “Doer of the Week”, Keren also organizes monthly events for Seattle food bloggers where she holds Q&A sessions with famous authors, tours of food companies and other events to help bloggers interact. Keren’s food events information can be found at Frantic Foodie in the Seattle PI, www.FranticFoodie.com and on the events page of MyNorthwest.com. For more information, visit www.foodportunity.com/portland and follow us @foodportunityor and #foodprtpdx.